Strikes Against Cora
by Ashleigh Crawley
Summary: A Downton Abbey, Universe Alteration where Robert has loved Cora since before they got married. This leads to shenanigans where they are ultimately caught by Robert's mother, the Countess of Grantham. Lady Grantham is not pleased at any of theses situations, and she blames it on 'the American'.
1. Hide With Me

**Chapter One: Hide with Me**

Robert and Cora were sitting rather close together on the settee, talking to each other. They were alone in the library for the first time in a few weeks, with all the wedding bustle, they barely had time to see one another, except in the evenings. Robert looked at Cora expectantly, as if silently asking her a question. Cora tried to keep herself from blushing, biting her bottom lip gently before nodding. She knew exactly what the question was, for Robert had asked her almost every time they were alone together these days. Ever since he had told her that he loved her. Robert smiled and placed his hand on her knee, making her blush. He inched closer to her, putting his other hand on her face, cupping her cheek. Cora parted her lips slightly as he leaned in to kiss her softly on the lips. Robert bit her top lip teasingly and gently at the same tip while Cora bit his bottom lip, sucking it between her lips. Robert smiled into the kiss, making Cora smile too. Cora's hands moved from her lap to cup Robert's face before she trailed them to the back of his neck, pulling him closer and deepening the kiss. Robert moved closer to Cora, unknowingly nudging her onto her back. He slid his hand up from her knee to her waist, pulling her closer to him. Feeling his top half go horizontal, he broke the kiss and looked at Cora, staring into her eyes.

Cora looked up, breathless. Robert moved back to a sitting position. "I... I am so, so sorry Miss Levinson, I don't know what came over me," he stammered nervously. If someone had walked in and seen them like that, her good reputation would have been ruined and his mother would have been furious.

"I do, it was only a kiss, Robert," she said, smiling at him, making him want to kiss her again. "There's nothing wrong with an innocent kiss, is there? Do the English not kiss before their wedding day?"

"Of course we do, Cora, you know that," he continued stammering in reply. "And there's nothing wrong with an innocent kiss, but what we were doing is completely different. I was on top of you. If someone had walked in..."

"Then let's go kiss where we won't get caught," Cora suggested, smirking lightly, her chest rising and falling as she imagined kissing Robert in a small and dark closet. It was such a naughty notion and it made her quite giddy just imagining it.

Robert reddened and looked around quickly. "Where did you have in mind, my dear?" he asked. He wanted to hide away with her anywhere, he'd even risk being found in his dressing room, or her newly adjoining bedroom. Since they got adjoining rooms, they had opened the bolts on the door so that Robert could slip into Cora's room and chat and cuddle with her before finally going to bed. It was quite exciting, the prospect of being found. And they would be married in a week, what was the harm in a little bit of excitement and naughtiness.

"A small, dark closet perhaps," she leaned in and whispered into his ear. "What do you think?"

"That sounds splendid, Cora, but we'll have to be very sneaky," he replied, whispering into her ear. "Do you know how wonderful it is that you're American and willing to do things that aren't exactly proper?"

"No, why don't you tell me," she suggested, winking slightly before getting off the settee and walking to the library door, checking to make sure the coast was clear before beckoning for Robert to come along. He hurried to the door, where she whispered, "lead on, my love."

Robert took her hand and looked in the hall again to make sure no one would catch them running upstairs. "Come on," he whispered, quickly leading her up the stairs and to the nearest closet. Cora opened the door and pulled Robert inside with her, shutting the door quietly. Cora grinned before practically throwing herself into Robert's arms and kissing him like crazy. Robert immediately responded, wrapping his arms tighter around her, backing her into one of the shelves before he could stop himself. Cora's arms wrapped around his neck, pulling him closer to her. The couple remained like this until light poured in and their lips sprang apart, but they held onto each other, as the, now shrill, voice of Robert's mother started hollering at the couple.

"ROBERT CRAWLEY, HOW DARE YOU DO SOMETHING THIS IRRESPONSIBLE. YOU KNOW BETTER, YOU WERE RAISED BETTER. I BLAME HER. YOUR FATHER AND I NEVER HAD ANY PROBLEMS WITH YOUR BEHAVIOUR UNTIL THE AMERICAN CAME ALONG," she shouted, making Cora quite nervous. Lady Grantham had threatened on several occasions to cancel the engagement and neither Robert, nor Cora, would be able to bear it if that happened. They loved each other and couldn't bear to be apart from one another. Robert had told his mother last time that if she forced Cora out, he would leave, find her and they would elope. Cora was pleased at his romantic gestures like that, but now the couple remained silent.

Once Lady Grantham stopped shouting about how she blamed the arrival of Cora and her 'American indecency' for Robert's change of behaviour, Robert finally took a deep breath. "I'm sorry mama," he said, leading Cora from the closet and down the stairs. "I'm sorry Cora."

"No, Robert, it's me who should be sorry, not you," she said. "I tempted you."

"I tempted you as well," he replied.

"But I am supposed to be a lady, I should be able to resist," she whispered.

"If you could resist me, there might be trouble," he joked, looking around before pressing his lips to her's eagerly. "I love you."

"And I, you," she replied, smiling up at Robert.


	2. Undone in the Open

**Chapter Two: Undone in the Open**

It had only been one day since Robert and Cora had been caught in the linen closet by Lady Grantham. She agreed to allow the two to be alone together, as long as they didn't hide in the closet any more. Neither Lady Grantham, nor Mrs. Levinson, could constantly chaperone the couple any more, the wedding was too close, so the couple were left to their own devices more and more often. They promised to stay in common areas, like the library and drawing room, and to not be caught in any room where they would be difficult to find.

Dinner the previous night had been quiet and awkward, especially for Robert and Cora. They still sat next to each other and now Robert's mother was requesting that she could see his hands at all times to make sure he wasn't touching Cora under the table. On top of the table though, Robert and Cora brushed each others hands 'accidentally' quite a few times, irking Lady Grantham to no end. The next morning after breakfast, they had begged bot Lady Grantham and Mrs. Levinson for some time alone together. They reluctantly agreed, and agreed since the two of them needed to go over a few things for the wedding, that 'Empress Violet' as Mrs. Levinson referred to her, claimed she could do herself, but was not allowed to since it was the most important day in Cora's life, and Mrs. Levinson wanted a hand in her daughter's wedding.

Robert and Cora sat in the library once again, quite close to one another. Robert had his hand on Cora's thigh already, after they had only been sitting together for about 10 minutes. Cora smiled at Robert before lunging at him, attacking his mouth with her's. How she loved kissing him. His lips were quite soft, his tongue tasted minty and he always responded to her lips with the greatest enthusiasm. His tongue slipped into her mouth after she opened it, eager to allow him what they both wanted. His tongue playfully prodded her's and she fought back, making it much more exhilarating. Robert's hands pulled her into his lap, him pulling up her skirts so she could sit astride his thighs. Cora grinned into the kiss, assisting Robert in moving her body. She loved how he just took control and had her skirts up. She was pleased that he didn't mind that they might be caught. Anyway, they were keeping their promise and not running off to any closets; they were staying in a common area. Cora's hands held Robert's head to her's as she ran her fingers through his gorgeous hair (the hair that her journal had heard quite a bit about, more than three pages in total). Robert pulled Cora as close as possible, his hands on her waist, wishing he could feel her bare skin, rather than layers of fabric as well as a corset. He couldn't wait until she was his wife. Then he could finally have her in every way.

His hands trailed up from her waist to touch her breast through the material. She broke the kiss and smiled, moving his hand to touch the exposed skin above the neckline. Robert grinned happily at her before licking her collarbone, travelling upwards to her neck, and up even further to beneath her ear. Robert, at the time, was unaware that his fiancee was ticklish in that particular location, so when she started giggling, he pulled away. "I'm ticklish, Robert," Cora said, breathlessly. Robert raised his eyebrows and smirked before going back to lick and scrape his teeth beneath her ear. Cora groaned and giggled as he made her feel quite giddy and, a big surprise indeed, aroused by his teeth and tongue against her like that. She very nearly reduced to begging him to suck on the skin, but she knew that it would likely leave a mark, and that was the last thing they needed. Cora pulled his mouth away from her. "Robert, if we keep doing this on the settee, I fear we will fall and I would certainly be injured by the table."

Robert nodded his head and smiled, allowing Cora to get off his legs. He moved to sit on the floor, away from any hazards. Cora smiled and climbed back on top of him. She leaned forward, pressing their chests together, while she straddled Robert in the middle of the library floor. Robert took her waist in his hands and resumed his actions to her jawline area. Cora wanted him so badly, feeling him between her legs like this was wonderful. She wanted to feel more of his skin and take his clothes off, as well as her own, and have him make love to her right there in the library. He was making her hungrier and hungrier for him by the moment. Cora was so caught up in Robert's actions, she didn't hear their mother's bickering and entering the library until she heard Lady Grantham's scream. Cora's head shot up and she turned it, witnessing the anger in Lady Grantham's face and the shock in her own mother's.

"STAND UP AT ONCE, THE BOTH OF YOU," Lady Grantham shouted, making the two of them jump to their feet. Cora didn't have enough time to fix her skirts and her ankles were exposed as she hid behind Robert, who was much more presentable. "YOUNG LADY, MOVE AWAY FROM HIM, NOW. WHERE IS YOUR SENSE OF DECENCY?"

Cora found herself unable to speak. "M'Lady, we never intended for it to get this far. It was only a kiss," she finally said, her voice quiet.

"Only a kiss," Lady Grantham murmured. "That is the biggest lie I've heard since Rosamund told me that her Mr. Painswick fellow ended up in her room for a talk and they happened to fall asleep half-naked on her bed."

"We were only kissing in the beginning, mama," Robert said quietly, going to Cora's defence.

"And when Mrs. Levinson and I came in, she was on top of you on the floor. How do you explain that?" she asked.

"We fell on the floor," he replied. "We love each other and we just wanted to kiss and be close to one another."

"You can kiss, but please, keep it decent and once you're married, please keep those things reserved to night and her bedroom," Lady Grantham replied, her anger less evident in her face.

"Yes mama," Robert said.

"Of course M'Lady," Cora replied.

"I want an explanation for what happened to her skirts though, and precisely how she landed astride you," Lady Grantham pressed.

"That was my fault mama," Robert said. "Cora had nothing to do with either of those. She was too caught up in the kiss to realize what I was doing. I'm sorry mama, I'm sorry Cora, I'm sorry Mrs. Levinson."

Lady Grantham gave them a look telling them that she barely believed their story as she walked out, Mrs. Levinson following behind her.


	3. The Naughty Ones

**Chapter Three: The Naughty Ones**

Robert rolled over on his bed three nights before his wedding. He hated how he had to spend three more nights in solitude, he couldn't take it anymore, he needed Cora. He stood up and walked over to the dividing door. He knocked on it lightly and in under a minutes, Cora had opened the door. She smiled as she pulled him into her room.

"I thought you'd never come," she whispered, her voice dripping with desire.

"I'm not supposed to, you know that," he replied, taking her hips and leading her back to the bed.

"Haven't we already said that we don't care about propriety?" she asked, sitting on her bed and pulling him on top of her as she leaned backward.

Robert chuckled lightly. "Well, you know, this is one thing that should be done properly. Waiting until marriage," he whispered, kissing her neck and touching her breasts through her night gown. Cora inhaled sharply. If she had wanted him before, she _needed _him now.

"Touch me Robert, damn propriety," she hissed.

"Gladly," Robert replied, helping her to get completely on the bed. He reached down and pulled her nightgown up to bring over her head. She assisted him in getting her naked. Unfortunately for him, she was still wearing her drawers, so he needed to get those off too. He pulled at the drawstring and he pulled them down her legs, tossing them over his shoulder. "Don't wear those on our wedding night, okay?" He then took in her naked body. It was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen in his life. Then again, he had never seen a naked woman before. His lips curved into a smile, knowing that everything: her firm and perfectly perky breasts, her hips, legs, slender waist, her flat stomach; it was all his. No other man would ever see her like this.

He felt his raging arousal in his pyjamas, so he hurriedly rid himself of his shirt and trousers, throwing his drawers off. He had no time for trivial things like clothing. Clothing and other people and rules were simply barriers to his passion for Cora. Cora stared at his naked form for a moment, smiling, her face flushed. His chest was perfect, his legs firm and muscular, and then there was his manhood. She tried to not look, but it was so large and hard, she couldn't help herself. She felt her cheeks redden as she got onto her knees and moved closer to him. She smiled as she looked down and touched him with her hand gently. He _was _hard, and she had made him like that. She felt powerful and loved, the way Robert always made her feel. Robert inhaled sharply at her hand on him and she looked up into his eyes. He wanted her more. She closed her hand around him and kissed him eagerly, pressing him backward onto his back. "I love you," she whispered as his hand stroked her breast. She removed her hand from his manhood to thread through his hair as she leaned forward, their chests pressed together. Robert threw his head back as Cora's nipples brushed against his chest. "Take me."

Robert looked up into Cora's eyes, the light blue was now a much darker hue. Her eyes were dark with desire. He took her hips in his hands and he moved them to get her onto her back. He hovered over her, her hair had fallen from it's braid, sending her hair all over the pillow beneath her head. He dipped his head down to capture her lips in his. His tongue slipped into her mouth and immediately found her's, engaging it in an intricate and intimate dance. Cora's hands wound Robert's hair tighter in between her fingers, pulling it teasingly in pleasure. Robert's right hand was on her breast, his left in the small curve of her waist. Her back was pressed against the mattress, her body aching for Robert to take her and make her completely his. His naked body on top of her's felt so right, more right than anything else in her entire life, and she knew from his arousal, that he wanted and needed her as much as she needed him. Cora broke the kiss urgently, feeling moisture between her thighs that she had never felt before. "Oh, Robert," she begged. "Just take me."

Robert smiled and nodded, kissing her lips one more time before helping her wrap her legs around his waist. He settled down between her legs, gently pressing into her. He pushed a little bit further, only to hear Cora shriek lightly. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No, just a little bit of pain, I'm fine," she replied, looking into his eyes. Yes, it was pain, but with Robert on top of her, it was more of a pleasurable pain. According to what her mother had told her during their talk with Lady Grantham about her duty as a wife to Robert, as well as Downton, it had come up that it would hurt the first time. They also said that there would be blood, but she didn't care, no one would notice it. Or so she hoped. She'd come up with something. "Keep going Robert."

Robert kissed her again, upset with himself for hurting her. He hadn't meant to, it just happened. He was being as gentle as he could, unless his passion and desire had fogged his judgement and he was being rough. He gently thrust in and out of her, making her moan, groan, smile and beg more than he could ever imagine. Her reactions to his movements were certainly boosting his confidence. He buried his face in between her breasts, sucking lightly at the skin of her chest, bringing the most delightful moans from his lover's lips. He knew that he wouldn't last much longer, she was driving him mad with her moans. He thrust a little bit faster and a little bit harder, hoping to bring her to her end before he reached his. Cora's breathing got heavier and heavier before she cried out, clutching him to her as her inner walls clenched around him. From what he had heard from his friends who had taken prostitutes, that was Cora's end. Robert sped up, coming to his own end seconds after her.

Robert collapsed on top of her, kissing her face all over, holding her to him. She looked radiant, glistening from their exertions. Cora moved first, running her hands up to his head and her fingers through his gorgeous head of hair. "You were marvellous Robert," she gasped, still trying to catch her breath.

"Was I?" he replied, trying desperately to sound like his heart was going at a normal pace. "It was my first time, so I'm glad you feel that way." He rested his head where her heart was, listening to the rapid beating.

"You were," she replied. "I have nothing other than you to go off of, and I never will, so you know, that's just great. How did you know how to pleasure me like that if it was your first time?"

"I just did what felt right. Being inside you felt right and that was a stepping stool," he replied. "All I knew was that I wanted you to enjoy our first time making love as much as I would. Your pleasure is important to me, which is why I got nervous when you shrieked. What happened?"

"Just normal pain for a woman the first time," she said, smiling at him.

"Well, I'm glad we didn't wait until our wedding night, I'd never forgive myself if I hurt you on our wedding night," he said, looking at her, worshipping her. She smiled at him and pulled him up, crashing her lips against his.

"I love you," she whispered. "Now, I suggest we sleep."

"But, when the maid comes in in the morning..." Robert started.

"She won't come up until I ring for her," Cora said.

"We might get caught," he said. "And I would hate for my mother to yell at you any more than she has done already."

"Robert, I can handle it," she said. "And when you wake up in the morning, you can go back to your dressing room."

"Alright," he replied, smiling. He was secretly glad that Cora wanted him to stay with her at night. It was quite romantic. He wanted to hold her in his arms and most likely, enjoy the best sleep he ever had. Cora shifted her body to pull the covers down, slipping underneath them. His pyjamas and her nightgown were scattered around the room, and neither wanted to, nor possessed the energy to get up and get redressed. Robert slipped under the covers with Cora; she moved to cuddle into his outstretched arms. Before long, the couple were sound asleep.

The next morning, the housemaid in charge of looking after Miss Levinson sat in the servants hall with Master Robert's valet, waiting for the bells to ring, summoning them. Lady Grantham sat in the library, wondering why Patrick had told her that Robert had not come down for breakfast, and neither had the American. She was getting sick of waiting. She left the library, her patience wearing thin as she walked up the stairs and down the hall. She intended to get her son out of bed first, so she knocked on his dressing room door. There was no answer; so she opened the door and found that the room was empty. She shut the door and she knocked on the next door, the room where the American was sleeping. Before she got an answer however, she opened the door and screamed in horror at the sight in front of her. Her son's naked back was facing her, clothes were scattered all across the room, including, she noticed, two pairs of drawers, meaning her son and the American were naked in bed together. Violet was not a stupid woman, she knew what that meant. It meant that Robert had been coerced by the American into bed with her.

The sound of the scream brought Robert and Cora from their dreams. The moment Robert noticed that the sun was peeking through the curtains, he silently cursed himself. He had planned to get up before sunrise to slip out to stop anything from happening. They had been caught. And not by a housemaid, that would have been so much kinder, they had been caught by his mother. Cora was instantly frightened when she heard the scream of the Countess of Grantham, even more scared when she realized Robert was still in bed with her. Cora sat up with Robert, pulling the covers up, holding them so that Robert's mother couldn't see what was going on. Violet stepped further into the room.

"What is going on?" she asked, her voice dangerously low.

"We were sleeping," Cora replied.

"Together? And without clothes on?" she implored.

"Yes," Cora said as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Why?"

"Because we wanted to," Robert cut in. "And we're almost married, so it's okay."

"IT IS NOT OKAY, ROBERT JAME CRAWLEY. WHAT GIVES YOU THE IDEA THAT THIS BEHAVIOUR IS ALRIGHT?" Violet shouted. "BEING IN BED TOGETHER BEFORE YOU'RE MARRIED IS DISGRACEFUL. WHAT IF SHE'S PREGNANT?"

"There's only a couple of days until we will be married, and if she is pregnant, no one will figure out that it happened before the wedding," he replied. "It's not as if our wedding is months away.

"Fine," Violet said darkly, her voice dropping dangerously low once again. "Do what you want, but when the American causes our family to be an unwelcome topic of conversation and brings scandal down on our heads, don't say I didn't warn you. This is Rosamund and the Banker all over again," She walked out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

"I expected more yelling from her," Cora admitted.

"So did I," Robert replied, laying back down and pulling Cora into his arms, falling back asleep.


End file.
